Bolos and Hot Chocolate
by AceOfSpades22
Summary: Mama Carriedo has to go into town, leaving her boys to their own devices. Of course she left them breakfast! Too bad little Antonio drops his plate!


**A cute story for you all! For those who don't know, Enrique is Portugal and Mamá Carriedo, also referred to in other fics by me as Marsilla Fernandez Carriedo, is my version of the personified Iberia. She is also, clearly, Antonio and Enrique's mother. Enjoy!**

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"Mijos I have to go to the store. You two stay out of trouble! If you boys need anything, go ask Abuelo. Te quiero mijos, I'll be back soon!" Mamá Carriedo called into her beautiful stone home, praying at least one of her scatterbrained boys heard her. Silence met her ears as she waited for an answer, leaving her to smile faintly and move back into the house. She had to at least attempt to keep her babies out of mischief.

With a sigh, she moved back into her house, smiling as she looked around the familiar, carved stone walls. Her house, carved into the side of a stone hill, had been in her family since her Papá's abuelo had carved it himself. The soft tanned walls, a warm milky caramel, held divots and cubbies, all full of warm cinnamon candles, red in color. Her living room had a set of wicker basket chairs with red and gold cushions, a beautiful, carved shelf full of books, games for her boys, and a little radio, a simple wooden table, matching that of the shelf, held an unfinished chess game, he pieces carved from the left over stone of the house. It was her home, and she loved it.

Reminiscing aside, she moved to the stairs, looking up to see none of the candles that usually lit the way held a soft, flickering flame. Her boys were still asleep then.

"Oie... Mijos going to sleep the day away huh?" She sighed, climbing up the stairs with her strappy red heels clicking softly against the stone. When she was young, her Papá never let her or her sisters sleep much past the sun; she followed the same rules with her sons.

"Enrique Santiago Fernandez Carriedo, you get your mischievous little butt out of bed right now. The sun is up and waiting to tell you buenos diaz!" She called with a soft smile on her face as she moved inside her eldest son's room. Very quickly her soft smile turned into a set of pursed lips and a raised eyebrow. The room was far from beautiful and organized like her living room.

Little boy clothing was strewn everywhere, blocks and a little toy train separated her from where her little trouble maker slept on his bed, a foot and an arm hanging off the side, blanket haphazardly kicked away from him. His little mouth hung open, helping to produce noisy snores. Mamá Carriedo smiled once more as she moved over to him and sat on the side of his bed.

"Enrique. Wake up mijo." She sighed, shaking his shoulder gently, looking around the room a bit in exasperation when a fluffy, almost spikey looking kitten crawled out from under a discarded shirt.

The little boy started awake under his mother's gentle shake and blinked bright, startled warm cocoa colored eyes looked up at her, disoriented for a brief moment before a sleepy smile spread across his sun kissed, soft skinned face. "Bom dia Mamá." He yawned, moving over to her and crawling into her lap with a sigh. He pressed his sleep warmed body against her chest in a sweet, tight little hug before he moved away and got to his feet.

"Buenos dias mijo. I'm going into town to the store. Abuelo is out and about outside so you have to keep an eye on Antonio, sí? Please... Stay out of mischief." She instructed, getting to her feet and expertly stepping around the disaster zone. "Pick this mess up!" She added in exasperation, before she left his room and continued down the hall to the handful of stairs that led to her baby's room.

Her little Antonio's room was far different from Enrique's. The room was half the size of her oldest son's, though what was special about it, was that it had a secret little cubby in the wall, big enough for an adventurous little boy to play the day away in.

Aside from the size difference, the space was tidy. All of his toys were neatly put away on low, carved nooks in the walls, replacing the candles that decorated the rest of the house. There wasn't a single article of clothing on the floor. She could actually see the red and gold rug that covered his floor.

Even the way her baby slept was different from the way her Enrique did. He was tucked under his blanket, tucked in a little ball with his little head nestled in the center of his pillow. A little bull stuffed animal peeked over the edge of the blanket by his peaceful little face and his chocolate colored hair stuck up in little tufts. He barely made a sound as he slept.

Quietly, Mamá Carriedo moved over to his bed and sat on the edge of it just as she had for Enrique, and she shook his shoulder gently, laughing softly as he yawned without opening his eyes and pressed his little face into his stuffed bull, a tiny smile on his lips.

"Antonio… Come on mijo. Rise and shine for a new day." She cooed softly, a soft laugh bubbling past her lips. "I see you smiling at me. Wake up mijo."

Again, he yawned and snuggled with his bull, this time curling a little tighter on himself and hunching down under his blanket.

Mamá Carriedo shook her head with another soft laugh and slowly peeled back the blanket that hid her son from view. It was cute, the way he clung to his stuffed bull with both arms and stubbornly kept his eyes closed, though he was trying very hard to stifle little giggles the longer he tried to stay "asleep". Of course she wasn't fooled.

Slowly she leaned over him and kissed his forehead, to which bright, verdant eyes peeked up at her. "Oh look. He's awake! And here I thought I was going to have to tickle you awake!" She teased, gently squeezing his side.

Antonio squeaked and squirmed with a fit of giggles that refuted any sort of protest he could voice. "No Mamá! Don't tickle me!" He cried, wiggling away from her with high pitched giggles.

"Good thing you got up then, sí?" Mamá Carriedo laughed, returning to her feet once more. "I have to go to the store." She repeated, moving back towards his door. "So if you need anything, have tú hermano help you."

As she spoke, Enrique popped into Antonio's room, hair disheveled and still in his pajama pants. "¡Bom dia irmãozinho" He chirped, bouncing over to Antonio's bed and ruffling his hair with a bright little grin. "We should play a game!" He stated grandly, instantly gaining Antonio's attention.

Mamá Carriedo smiled as she made her escape, only looking over her shoulder for a moment once she hit Antonio's door. "Mijos, there are bolos and hot chocolate ready for you in the kitchen. Stay out of trouble!" She called, before she headed down the stairs and out the front door, laughing as she heard Antonio scramble from his bed and Enrique challenge that he could "get down the stairs fastester". They'd be just fine.

"Come on irmãozinho! They'll be cold by the time we get down!" Enrique grumbled impatiently as Antonio toppled out of bed, tangled up in his blankets. When the tiny Spanish boy looked up at him with bright green eyes that begged for help, the older rolled his eyes and moved over to him, helping to untangle the blanket from around his little brother's limbs. "Come _on _Antonio!"

"I'm coming! ¡Lo siento!" Antonio squeaked, clutching the back left leg of his bull in his little hand as he scurried after Enrique, his little belly rumbling while the rest of him sprouted goose bumps as he left the warmth of his bed. The only thing that covered him up was the long sleeve shirt of his abuelo's that acted more like a baggy night gown than a shirt on his little frame.

The two hit the kitchen at record speed in their excitement for the freshly baked pastries. Already the sweet smell flooded their noses.

Enrique pulled a chair from the table over to the counter where the mound of golden bolos sat, tantalizingly warm. He pulled down two heavy plates from the shelf above his head and sat them on the counter. "Tonio, do you want the red one or the orange one?" He asked, looking down at his little brother who was staring longingly up at the pastries.

"¡Rojo, rojo!" Antonio chanted, reaching up for one of the bolos impatiently, his little hands stretched wide open.

"Soon, irmãozinho. Soon." Enriques chided, putting one of the warm, sweet bolos onto the red plate, and then another onto the orange before he hopped from the chair and pushed it down a little ways.

A pot of toasty hot chocolate sat beside the bolos, requiring mugs. After all, they could hardly eat nice, warm, mouth wateringly delicious bolos without hot chocolate to drink and dip it in!

The older Carriedo boy took down two mugs, both matching the color of the plates, and set them on the counter, before hopping off the chair again, moving the ceramic mugs over to the bolos and the hot chocolate pot, and moved the chair back over to them.

"Remember irmãozinho, the hot chocolate is going to be very hot ok?" Enrique reminded softly, pouring some of the rich, creamy liquid in each of the mugs.

Antonio nodded impatiently, rubbing his eyes with a tiny little fist as a yawn split his lips. "I know hermano. I know."

"I'm just making sure! Last time yu burnt your tongue and Mamá almost swat my behind with her spoon!" Enrique muttered, hopping off the chair a third time. This time he pushed it to the table and returned to the counter, handing Antonio his plate with cautious cocoa colored eyes. "Hold the plate with both hands now. You don't want to-" He winced as he didn't get to finish his sentence before the plate slid from Antonio's hands and shattered on the stone floor.

Instantly tears flood Antonio's eyes as he looked up at Enrique, biting his little lip as huge tears streamed down his cheeks. "I... I I... Lo s-s-siento!" He wailed, moving to pick up the pieces before Enrique could tell him not to.

"Antonio don't do that!" But it was too late. Enrique scrambled to pull Antonio's hands away from the broken pottery plate just as one of the large pieces cut open his baby brother's hand, splashing droplets of crimson on the stone floor among the pieces of plate.

Antonio let out a loud wail and dropped the plate piece, tears falling relentlessly down his cheeks as he simply stood there, hand bleeding. "Owie!" He cried, his other hand white knuckled as it clutched the foot of his well-loved bull. "Owie owie!"

"Shhh. Tonio it's ok!" Enrique squeaked, eyes huge as he moved to grab on of Mamá's dish towels from the counter. With a thundering heart, he moved to his baby brother's side and grabbed his hand, leading him out of the pieces of broken plate carefully, not wanting him to cut up his feet. He didn't know what to do!

Thinking as fast as he could, he ran from the kitchen and up the stairs, grabbing a pair of shoes for the both of them before returning. "Here let me put these on you and we'll clean up your hand... It'll be ok. Breathe, sim?" Though Antonio only sobbed again.

Enrique sighed and sat him down, pulling Antonio's shoes on for him and then putting his own on. Feet protected, he grabbed one of the chairs from the table and pushed it over to the sink. He was grateful when the distraught, sobbing boy came over to him and climbed onto the chair without being asked, and very carefully stood up beside him. "Let me see your hand." He instructed, gently running water over the gash to clean it out like Mamá did whenever they scraped their knees or elbows.

Slowly Antonio calmed down, only sniffling softly every once in a while as he watched, mesmerized with the cut on his hand. The water washed away the blood faster than it could bubble up on his hand and it was icy cold, driving away the sting. By the time his big brother shut of the sink and wrapped his hand with the dish towel, it hardly hurt at all.

"Next time don't try to pick up the glass!" Enrique scolded gently, retrieving the broom to clean the pieces up off the floor. Just to be sure Antonio didn't think he was angry with him though, he ruffled his little brother's hair and handed him the bolo that had been on his plate. "Look. We'll get the plate cleaned up and everything will be better, sim?"

Antonio nodded with a sniffle, setting his bull down to eat the bolo he was handed.

Enrique smiled then and swept up the broken plate, though he still kept his shoes on when he was done, just in case. With a sigh, he sat on the floor beside Antonio, his own bolo now in his hands and took a bite out of it, sighing inwardly when it wasn't very warm anymore.

"And here I was going to have you go play with Abuelo's goat today... You managed to get yourself in trouble without my help though didn't you?" He teased, smiling as Antonio rested against his side. "Mamá is going to be angry with me..."He sighed, taking another bite of his lukewarm pastry unenthusiastically. He hated getting in trouble, especially with his mama.

Antonio just shook his little head though with a confident little smile. "No... We just gotta tell her what happened is all. She won't be mad." He mumbled, sniffling one last time. "I can tell her how you tried to say not to."

Enrique smiled a bit and draped an arm across his little brother's shoulders, a little more optimistic with his soft reassurances. "Maybe you're right... I guess we'll just have to figure it out, sim?"

"Si." Antonio agreed, knowing they could figure out how to keep Mamá from getting mad if they worked together.

After all. That's what brothers were for, right?

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**Hope you all enjoyed it! Feel free to leave me a review!**


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